Dozorro identified a potential overpayment of 10 million in the renovation of a school in Balta

The renovation of School No. 1 in Balta, Odesa Oblast, may result in an overpayment of 10.4 million hryvnias for construction materials. DOZORRO analysts raised the most questions about the prices of metal-plastic windows, which are listed in the cost estimate as three times more expensive than market prices.

This is reported in a DOZORRO article.

The Department of Capital Construction and Road Infrastructure of the Odesa Regional State Administration plans to sign a contract with the “AVIS” consortium, which was the sole bidder in the procurement process. Its bid amounts to nearly 101 million hryvnias excluding VAT, or about 121.2 million hryvnias including tax.

These funds are intended to finance the reconstruction of two buildings of School No. 1, the museum building, and the boiler room. The work includes insulating the facades, replacing windows, repairing roofs and interiors, upgrading utility systems, and landscaping the grounds. The renovation is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2027.

According to analysts’ calculations, the largest likely overpayment relates to metal-plastic windows with double-pane glass—4.2 million hryvnias. The cost estimate lists them at 13,656 hryvnias per square meter, including VAT, whereas the prices in the proposals cited by analysts range from approximately 4,100 to 4,900 hryvnias per square meter.

Another approximately 1.2 million hryvnias could be overpaid for the Ceresit CN 69 Nivel Super self-leveling compound. It was included in the cost estimate at 90.95 hryvnias per kilogram, whereas in the stores cited in the study, it costs about 19–21 hryvnias per kilogram.

Analysts also identified potential overpricing for concrete, thermal insulation materials, and waterproofing mastic. The total amount of potential overpayment for the analyzed materials amounts to 10.4 million hryvnias. DOZORRO has already contacted the contracting authority to request a review of the prices. According to the report, the contract price is dynamic, so the cost of materials can be adjusted during the course of the work.

The State Audit Service has also taken note of the procurement. Among the violations identified are — the “AVIS” consortium’s lack of a license for fireproofing work, inflated procurement and warehousing costs for certain metal products, and the absence in the draft contract of a procedure for using funds to cover inflation-related costs.

Based on the audit findings, the auditors required the contracting authority to revoke the decision awarding the contract to the “AVIS” consortium.

The consortium was registered in Odesa in August 2024. According to YouControl, its founders are SK Avtostroy LLC and Inzh-Stroy LLC. Since entering the public procurement market, the company has signed contracts through Prozorro totaling over 438 million hryvnias.

Ірина Глухова